Waiter faces 15-year term for killing girlfriend

Dubai: A waiter faces 15 years in jail for premeditatedly killing his girlfriend and dumping her body in a manhole shortly after celebrating Valentine's Day with her.

The Dubai Court of First Instance yesterday convicted the 31-year-old Indian waiter of beating his Myanmarese girlfriend and then intentionally strangling her to death before dumping her body in a manhole in Al Nahda.

Presiding Judge Al Saeed Mohammad Barghout, who pronounced yesterday's verdict, said the accused, S.C., will be deported after completing his punishment.

Prosecutors accused the defendant of premeditatedly killing his girlfriend, H.H.

Records said she screamed and cried for help after she fell and hit the pavement when S.C. pushed her. He then strangled her. Her trousers came off and remained in his hands after her body slid from between his arms when he carried her head first and dumped her in the manhole.

‘Argument'

According to the charge sheet, the accused stole the deceased's Dh300 from her trousers.

"I am not guilty… it wasn't me who killed her," defended S.C. when he appeared in court earlier.

"I gave her a gift while we celebrated Valentine's Day at Mamzar Park and then I took her [home]. Once we reached near her home, we indulged in [a] heated argument which later evolved to a fight… I asked her to repay the money which I lent her earlier," admitted the defendant in his statement to prosecutors.

Records said the accused covered the manhole with a plastic cover to hide his crime.

When the accused appeared in court, he retracted his confession and pleaded not guilty.

An Emirati first corporal, who took S.C. to the scene to re-enact the crime, testified that the accused cried and seemed extremely affected.

Debt

Meanwhile, an Emirati second lieutenant, who questioned him, testified: "He took her back home. When he asked her to repay an old debt, they fought… he claimed he took her by surprise and smothered her. When she died, he admitted that he dumped her in the manhole so that nobody would notice her disappearance".

A 21-year-old Myanmarese waitress, who worked with the accused at the airport and was also H.H.'s roommate, claimed in her statement: "She went missing for six days… the last time I heard about H.H. was that she went on a date with S.C. When I asked him about her, he seemed perplexed and was sweating heavily. He claimed that they went out to Al Mamzar Park on a date and then he left her near her house and returned to his home. [Mutual] friends told me later that S.C. vomited, called sick and was admitted to hospital."

The primary verdict is still subject to appeal within 15 days.